Book 18 IELTS General Writing Test 3
Answers
Model Answer
This model has been prepared by an examiner as an example of a very good answer.
“Dear Sir or Madam
I am writing to complain about the information on your website and the service I received at Central Station. Yesterday my elderly uncle and I arrived at Central intending to use the tickets we had purchased online to travel to Newcastle at 5.50pm. Unfortunately, we were told that our tickets. were for off-peak and we couldn’t use them.
When I bought the tickets, it was not clear on the website that they were just for certain times. This needs to be clarified on your website as I can’t be the only one who has made this mistake. However, what really upset me was the unhelpful manner of the staff. When we asked what to do, instead of helping us to pay the difference and catch our train, the attendant waved us in the direction of a ticket machine with a long queue. We missed our train and waited an hour for the next one. Please train your personnel to be more proactive in future.
I hope you find this feedback useful and take it on board.
Yours faithfully”
Here are comments from another examiner.
This is a very strong response to the task: all three bullet points are addressed with a good level of detail, and the tone is suitable for a letter of complaint. There is clear progression throughout the letter and a very natural style.
The range of vocabulary is wide and includes many higher-level items [unhelpful manner of❘ pay the difference | direction of | proactive]. There is only one slip [off-peak/off-peak travel].
Overall, the response includes a variety of complex grammatical structures [intending to use], with numerous long sentences containing a number of clauses, including past perfect and modal forms [had purchased | couldn’t use].
This is already a very high-level response. To improve it, the final bullet point could be developed further, perhaps with an example of how the staff could be ‘more proactive”.
Model Answer
This model has been prepared by an examiner as an example of a very good answer.
“It is increasingly common for people to hold down more than one job. Gone are the days when people could rely on one source of income to satisfy all their financial needs. I would like to consider the reasons for this change and outline its advantages and disadvantages. People take on extra work because making ends meet has become so challenging. In recent years the cost of living has risen exponentially, making it a real challenge to break even at the end of the month. Additionally, advertising companies relentlessly promote the idea that more wealth means more happiness, a concept that many people believe. They may take on freelance jobs or weekend work in the hope of improving their lot in life.
A person with more than one job may experience several benefits. Diversifying your skills and gaining more experience can make you more employable when negotiating the highly competitive job market. Avoiding putting all your eggs in one basket is also a wise move as you have something to fall back on if one source of income stops.
There are also many downsides to this situation. Working for more than one company can quickly leave a person feeling overworked and burnt out. It also leaves limited time for being with family and friends or doing things you enjoy. What’s more, when you are spread too thin, you may produce poor-quality work.
Overall, I think it is important to remain balanced Having an additional source of income can be beneficial if you keep work in its place, but it is not worth damaging your health and relationships for the sake of a slightly larger bank balance.”
Here are comments from another examiner:
This is a strong response. The candidate has addressed both questions and provided a range of extended ideas.
The reasons given for having more than one job include the need to earn more to keep up with the [cost of living] and the idea, sold to people by advertising, that we should eam as much as possible [more wealth means more happiness].
The pros and cons of having more than one job are well covered. Advantages include increasing your skills and experience to make you more employable and avoiding putting (all your eggs in one basket] in case you lose one job. Disadvantages include feeling [overworked] or [burnt out], and [limited time] to spend with family and friends and on hobbies, and producing [poor-quality work).
The response is logically organised with well-managed cohesion. There are some very good linkers [Gone are the days when | Additionally | What’s more] and accurate reference and substitution.
Vocabulary is accurate and wide ranging [satisfy… financial needs | take on | risen exponentially | break even | improving their lot) with some sophisticated resource [putting all your eggs in one basket | burnt out spread too thin]. Similarly, the range of grammatical structures is wide and flexible.
This is a very good example of a higher-level response.